


Up and Down

by Daegaer



Series: Pretend to be Human [26]
Category: Saiyuki (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Androids, Brotherly Love, Childhood Friends, Friendship, M/M, Medication, Partial Mind Control, Science Fiction, Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-31
Updated: 2020-07-31
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:00:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,617
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28452027
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Daegaer/pseuds/Daegaer
Summary: For once it isn't Hakkai who's worming his way past Gojyo's defences. Goku asks for a favour.
Relationships: Cho Hakkai/Sha Gojyo
Series: Pretend to be Human [26]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1152416
Kudos: 11





	Up and Down

"Gojyo, take Goku outside to play," Sanzo said. "Hakkai, you stay here."

" _Sir_."

Goku looked at him in mild disgust. "How old do you think I am, Sanzo?"

The fan appeared, as if by magic, in Sanzo's hand. "Not too old for a spanking. Out."

Goku grumbled his way outside, but cheered up in the bright, cold air. He set off with determination down the road, Gojyo trailing him, then darted off between the buildings and uphill. It was like following him as a child again, his attention taken by small things here and there as he stopped abruptly to listen to things Gojyo had to filter his auditory channels to pick up clearly. Hakkai said that human teenagers could hear high pitched noises that others couldn't, and that this explained their choices in music. At the moment it seemed to be drawing Goku's attention erratically between far-off birds, insects sitting on blades of grass and the quiet hum of Gojyo's own power source.

"What size battery do you take?"

" _Huh. Personal. Question. Kid._ "

"I'm just kidding you. I know you're rechargeable. How come you never powered down for so long?"

" _I. Had. You. And. Sanzo. To. Look. After. And. A. Countryside. Of. Monsters. To. Cross._ "

"I'm glad you feel better – look at this beetle! Cool, huh? Anyway, about yesterday, I'm sorry I was weird, I mean, I know androids have feelings – I don't care what people say, they're stupid!"

" _You. Read. Too. Much. Sci-fi._ "

"Are you making a joke? You are! See? You have a sense of humour! You were always making jokes when I was a kid, too."

Gojyo shrugged, wondering if the sensation he was experiencing was a simulation of embarrassment. Don't show off in front of humans was always good advice. It was a stupid android who forgot it. It wasn't his fault he had a perfect recall of every joke told by some dumbass novice for the last fifty years. It _was_ his fault that he had sorted them by age-appropriate nature, and by category most likely to make Goku giggle. What could he say? He liked getting validation from humans with the best of them.

Goku's head whipped round and he pointed uphill. "Look, a hare! Let's catch it!"

He was gone before Gojyo could respond, fleet-footedly sprinting over the steep terrain. With an internal groan, Gojyo followed. By the time he caught up the hare was long gone and Goku was staring down over the town.

"Wow, we've come so far. What are those?"

The animals he indicated to the side ignored them both.

" _Yaks._ "

"They're cute. I wonder if Sanzo would let me have one?"

" _It's. Going. On. Your. Side. Of. The. Jeep._ "

"Come on, let's get up to that stream."

Gojyo nodded, wondering where on earth young creatures got their energy. Goku scampered ahead of him and plonked himself full length down on a rock, peering into the fast-moving water.

"Do you think it's safe to drink?"

" _Let. Me. Analyse – Goku!_ "

The kid stuck his whole head under water and came up spluttering. And laughing, which Gojyo hoped was a good sign.

"Oh, wow! That is freaking cold!"

" _Don't. Use. Language. Like. That. In. Front. Of. The. Others._ "

Goku grinned. "Heh. _Young man, write out this etiquette manual from a century ago in your best calligraphy!_ "

Gojyo shook his head in mock sadness. Humans were _terrible_ at impersonating androids.

" _I'm. the. One. Who. Sounds. Like. That. And. I. Don't. Sound. Like. That._ "

Goku rolled over onto his back and looked up at the sky. "Sanzo would just be like, 'Shut the fuck up.' Gojyo, he was much nicer to me when he was taking that medicine."

" _It. Wasn't. Good. For. Him,_ " Gojyo said gently. " _He. Had. To. Stop._ "

"Yeah. I know. It's like Hakkai said, all medicine has side-effects. But it was kind of nice, it was like he remembered what he was like when I was a little kid."

Shit. The kid was going to cry. Gojyo nudged him with one foot.

" _To. Be. Fair. You. Were. A. Cute. Kid. Now. You're. A. Gangly. Spotty. Teen. Not. So. Cute._ "

As he'd hoped, he got an outraged snort of laughter. It was followed by a good splash of water he didn't even see coming, drenching his clothing. Thanks, kid, he thought. Good job I won't get hypothermia.

"I feel like I could climb right up this mountain," Goku said. "Wanna try?"

" _Nope._ "

"Some fun you are. Hey, Gojyo, can I tell you something? You won't tell anyone, promise?"

Gojyo regarded him sceptically. " _It. Depends. What? You. Found. Another. Bookseller. To. Feed. Your Habit?_ "

Goku bounced up and down with excitement. Perhaps it was another young person he felt an age-appropriate attraction to. He grabbed Gojyo's arms.

"Gojyo! I _order_ you not to reveal what I'm about to say and do!"

Shit. Sanzo's order to obey Goku's commands as if they were his clamped down on him. Gojyo glared at Goku.

" _What. Are. You. Up. To?_ "

"You should be pleased! I'm paying attention to you and Hakkai! It's like you said, the medicine wasn't good for Sanzo, he had to stop taking it; and Hakkai's right, all medicine has side effects. So –" He stuck his hand in his pocket and withdrew it, opening his fist to reveal a huge handful of pills. Four – no five days' worth of pills, Gojyo calculated. "So long," he said, and tipped them into the stream. "Why do I even have to take them, anyway?"

" _Your. Headaches! The. Nightmares!_ " Gojyo couldn't believe what he'd seen, or how lax he had become that Goku, of all people, could have palmed his pills so easily for almost a week.

"I haven't had a single one of either," Goku said triumphantly. "I think they're side-effects. Not one word, OK?"

" _O.K._ " Gojyo said reluctantly.

"And I want you to help me avoid taking them in future."

It was too much. Too much. And it wasn't - technically - an order. It _wasn't_. He fought against the desire to agree, to bow, to get down on his knees and apologise for even _thinking_ of disobeying. It. Wasn't. An. Order.

" _N. N- Nn-o. No._ "

Goku just stared at him, while Gojyo felt himself tremble as if he was coming undone. He was going to glitch again. Not here, halfway up a damn mountain, not here –

"Gojyo, I _order_ you to help me avoid taking my pills in future."

Hakkai would say that _future_ was a – was a – was a _nebulous_ word. Yes. Ten years. Twenty years. Just not now. Hakkai could twist any damn order , he just had to think like him and say –

" _Nnnn_ "

"Gojyo!"

" _Nno_." His loyalty subroutines howled at him and he could feel his knees buckling. It's for his own good! he thought. He needs those pills! " _I w-w-won't._ " His voice was beginning to go, and he was producing random sounds. _No_ , he thought. _No._ He was on his knees, feeling pain everywhere, ready to be chastised. He was a terrible, faulty creature. He deserved everything that his master would do. _Bastards_ , he thought, cursing his designers. _Fuck you for doing this to me_.

Goku crashed down on his knees opposite him and flung his arms about him. "I rescind the order!" he yelled. "Both of them! Please be all right, please!"

The shaking and pain stopped and Gojyo just knelt there, motionless. He really should say something to reassure the kid. He really just wanted to roll into the stream and rust.

"Gojyo, I'm sorry, I didn't think – Sanzo always tells me I don't think. Please forgive me! I know you just want the best for me."

He nodded silently, and finally looked at Goku's worried face. He'd always been a kind-hearted kid, he hadn't imagined what might happen. Neither had Gojyo, he had to admit.

" _I'm. O.K. Really,_ " he said, glad that he could speak again.

"Gojyo, I'm not going to order you to hide what I did," Goku said, "Or to help me keep on doing it. That was mean and wrong of me. I'm going to ask you to do it – I've taken those pills for years, and no one will ever tell me why. Let me see if I can do without, just for a while, OK? Maybe someone lied to Sanzo about me being sick. Please?"

" _Kid. I. Can't. I have. To -_ "

"Please, Gojyo. Just for a while. I'm asking. Because you said you always loved me. And you know it’s not good to take medicine you don't need."

Well, shit. The kid obviously paid too much attention in his lessons with Hakkai. Absolutely no subroutines tugged at Gojyo at all, but there was a strange tight feeling all through him. He hugged Goku, who was looking at him with exactly the wide, golden look of hope he'd always had as a kid when he thought he could talk Gojyo into something Sanzo had already forbidden. When he'd thought of Gojyo as his cool, adult friend. I am not, he thought, programmed for this emotional response. He wished he could cry.

" _O.K. Yes. O.K._ "

Goku whooped, and kissed his cheek, which he hadn't done for almost ten years, and bounced up.

"C'mon! I'll race you back to the inn!"

" _You. Start. Off. I. Have. Something. I. Need. To. Do._ "

"Sure! See you there, slowcoach!"

Goku sped down the mountain, faster than Gojyo really liked, but never losing his footing. Gojyo waited until he was out of earshot, and turned into the wind, the better to carry his voice away.

" _For! Fuck's! Sake!_ "

Then he schooled his face to its normal placid appearance and carefully walked back to town.


End file.
